Information and commentary about the struggle for democracy in the African kingdom of Swaziland

Monday, February 4, 2013

CALL FOR OBSERVER BOYCOTT OF ELECTION

The main opposition group in Swaziland,
the banned People’s United Democratic Party (PUDEMO), has called for
international election observers to boycott this year’s national poll because
political parties are outlawed.

Mario Masuku, President of PUDEMO, said,
‘We are calling on countries not to respect the outcome of these elections and
we want the international poll observers to boycott the election because no
election shall be free in the absence of political parties.’

Masuku told the Voice of America the
election was a charade and a mockery of democracy and an affront to Swazis. He
said the balloting does not allow Swazis to freely choose their
representatives.

He said members of PUDEMO were unlikely
to participate in the vote. ‘We are on a campaign right now to boycott the
national election, to call for a true dialogue towards a national constitution
that is truly democratic,’ Masuku said.

Elections are held every five years in the kingdom where King Mswati III rules
as sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch. King Mswati has yet to tell his
subjects the date of this year’s election.

Following the last election in 2008, the
Commonwealth election monitoring team declared that the voting was flawed and
urged Swaziland to rewrite its constitution, if the kingdom wanted to ‘ensure
that Swaziland’s commitment to political pluralism is unequivocal’.

The Commonwealth poll group issued a report saying ‘it is widely accepted
internationally that democracy includes the right of individuals to associate with
and support the political party of their choice… Yet in practice this
right currently does not exist [in Swaziland]’.

In January 2012, Chief Mgwagwa Gamedze, Minister of Justice and Constitutional
Affairs in the Swaziland Government, confirmed that there would be no changes
from previous years to the way the national elections would be run and
political parties would remain banned.

King Mswati’s supporters dismiss
criticisms that the kingdom is un-democratic, saying Swaziland has a ‘unique’
democracy. This is built on a system of 55 Tinkhundla (local councils) and all
candidates for election are required to stand as individuals and if elected
personally represent the ordinary people in their local constituencies.

There are two chambers in the Swazi
parliament: the House of Assembly and the Senate. Of the 65 members of the
House, 10 are chosen by King Mswati and 55 are elected by the people. In the
Senate, King Mswati chooses 20 of the 30 places. The other 10 are chosen by
members of the House of Assembly. None are elected by the people.